Cyril Smith allegedly abused teenager in the House of Commons

Cyril Smith, the late Liberal MP who police believe sexually abused a string
of boys in his constituency, has now been accused of grooming and then
assaulting a young activist inside the Houses of Parliament

Related Articles

Simon Danczuk, the current MP for Rochdale, who named Smith as an abuser two weeks ago on the floor of the House of Commons, said the case indicated he was a serial and brazen abuser over many decades.

"We are now beginning to find that the serious sexual abuse committed by Smith was not just committed in the 60s but continued well after that, and even took place in the House of Commons,” he said.

"If the director of public prosecutions had reached the same decision as the police in 1970 to prosecute Smith, he would not have gone on to sexually abuse this man in 1979 and 1980.”

The alleged victim was a Liberal activist at the time and said that the abuse in Westminster was the culmination of 18 months of assaults.

"It happened more than six times over 18 months, and it was pushing the boundaries each time,” he said.

He was 16 when he first met Smith in 1979 and said he was particularly vulnerable, having fallen out with his adoptive parents.

"I had some trouble at home and I had told him about it,” he said.

“He offered to pick me up in his car and took me to the moors.

“While he was driving and as we spoke to each other, his left hand moved up my leg into my groin.”

The abuse happened intermittently, and sometimes nothing would happen when they were alone together, he said.

On other days, he would be grabbed and assaulted.

The assault in parliament happened after Smith invited the alleged victim down for a day.

It took place in the 29-stone MP's small office, as other MPs, including the Labour leader Michael Foot, walked by.

"There we were in parliament and he was manhandling me,” he said.

“I was and still am deeply ashamed about what I let him do to me.”

The victim, who has told the police about his ordeal, is now a businessman and a father of four.